LOS ANGELES – As city leaders vow to keep film production in Los Angeles, a filmmaker argues what Mayor Karen Bass is doing may not be enough.
What we know:
Austin James Wolff, a young filmmaker who starred in and produced “Wally Jackson and the Probability of Love and Car Accidents,” told FOX 11’s Susan Hirasuna that permits and fees required by the city nearly drove him out of Hollywood.
Wolff detailed some of the costs associated with producing films in Los Angeles.
“We had to pay a non-refundable application fee, a park monitor fee, a park-monitor reporting fee, a notification fee, and if that wasn’t enough, we also had to a pay a film use fee. And now, if any of these fees sound like they’re kind of the same thing, they kind of are, that the local government is sort of double-dipping with the amount of fees that we have to pay,” he said.
The backstory:
Wolff’s interview comes hours after Bass signed an executive order to support jobs in the entertainment industry. Bass vowed to lower costs and streamline the processes for filming. In addition, there would also be access to iconic locations like the Port of LA and the Griffith Observatory.
The LA Mayor also supported California Governor Gavin Newsom’s $750 million annual tax credit to film and TV production companies that shoot within the state.
FURTHER COVERAGE: Bass issues executive order to keep jobs in Hollywood
